Kansas City Shuffle
by AustraliasToast
Summary: Summary: Set quite a few years after the events in the DEBS movie, the latest top squad is sent on a new mission. A couple OC, a few borrowed characters here and there, and there will be Lucy/Amy eventually. Slight White Collar crossover but mostly for the use of Neal Caffrey, so it is mainly directed towards DEBS fans.
1. Prologue

Rating: T for now, but maybe borderline M later on, I guess we'll see where that goes but you have been warned, just in case!

Disclaimer: I do not own D.E.B.S., Angela Robinson is the mastermind behind it. White Collar belongs to USA Network and Jeff Eastin. No copyright infringement is intended, just having some fun and letting out my inner geek :P

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_**Kansas City Shuffle**_

**Prologue**

The lithe woman approached the house with caution, the cover of the night enabling her to move without being noticed. It was not a necessary precaution in this neighbourhood, but it was always better to be prepared for the worst. She was not exactly worried though, this one was a simple and easy job and the circumstances had played in her favour this time. The owners were out of town as expected since their car was not around, the security would be child's play and the house was not overly big so the target should be easy to find. The full moon could be a blessing or a curse, but in a place like this and after dark, it shouldn't be something to worry about. She got over the tall fence in two swift movements, rolled down on the grass, pushed her back against the wall and smiled slyly. It was far from being as challenging as some of the other thefts she'd executed so far, but it was still fun. Plus, she really loved that painting and thought she had just the right spot for it in her own home.

She walked around the corner of the building, a plastic storage tube dangling from her shoulder, and took a peak in the nearest window. The lights were out, all of them it seemed. Infrared cameras then. It didn't change anything, she knew where they were and how to avoid being seen. She moved quickly towards the door while pulling out a lock picking toolkit from her black cargo pant's left pocket and kneeled down, ready to make short work of the lock. As soon as she touched the door, it moved slightly, revealing the fact that it was already unlocked. She knew instantly that something was wrong and her first instinct was to make a run for it, but something told her she should still check inside. After all, the empty space on her wall wouldn't fill itself magically. She put the toolkit back where it came from, opened the door silently just wide enough for her to sneak in and closed it carefully.

Once inside, she started to move forward stealthily through the kitchen, straining her eyes and ears for anything unusual. The house was two stories high and the office was upstairs: this was most likely her destination. She tip-toed through the living room until she reached the moonlit hallway that led the way to the stairs, light creeping inside through the windows on both of its ends. That's when she came across the first body. It was a woman, in her thirties, lying on her side in a pool of her own blood. This could have been her if she had been around that night. One thing was certain, this was not the work of a professional. A butcher would be more like it, she thought disgusted. A very bad feeling started to creep up in the pit of her stomach. She knew that face… She always studied the premises, and the possible encounters, making sure she knew their every move to be able to strike at the best moment possible and avoiding any confrontation. She knew this house like the back of her hand by now, as well as the whereabouts of the family that owned it. She averted her eyes from the shape on the floor and looked in the direction of the stairs, trying to calm herself down. Unfortunately, what she saw next was nothing to help in that task. At the base of the stairs was a boy, who could not have been more than ten years old, sprawled lifeless on the floor, his limbs akimbo and neck visibly broken.

She started to feel her throat tighten and her vision blur. Painful memories she would rather keep deeply buried resurfaced and, for a moment, she felt paralyzed, unable to move away from the wall she was lying against, eyes squeezed shut. How could things have gone so wrong when she had planned everything so carefully? She opened her eyes and looked straight ahead of her. She noticed that a little door was opened in the middle of the wall. She opened it further and realized that it was the electric box. Everything had been shut down: she wouldn't have to try to avoid the cameras anymore. She could not let herself falter now. She kicked herself mentally and decided to keep moving, focusing on her goal and making sure not to leave a trace of her ever being here. She climbed the stairs silently with her back against the wall but stopped suddenly when she heard a noise upstairs, at the right end of the hallway. Someone was still around…

She all but jumped the last stairs that separated her from the second floor and landed softly next to the big wooden chest against the wall and hid in the dark corner behind its left side. Being all dressed in black sure made it easier to hide in the shadows. She pulled her hood up to cover her tied up hair and most of her face, stopped moving completely and breathed as silently as possible. She could still see the stairs from her vantage point, so she saw the two men going down, one of them holding her precious painting and the other one bringing up the rear with his gun out. They were not even trying to be quiet: they were laughing, talking about a job well done and how they were going to be rich. This could only mean that they thought there were no threat left in the house. She felt intense anger rise inside of her, and she realized it was not even so much about the painting anymore. How could someone murder a whole family, and children, just for that? She remained hidden after she heard them exit the house, until she heard a car start up and leave, thinking how unfair the situation was. If things were different she could have done something to prevent it, or at least made sure that those men got what they deserved. But that would mean having to expose herself, and she had worked too hard for too long to throw it all away now. She was getting ready to leave when she heard coughing in the room the two men had just left. She decided the hell with it: if someone was still alive, she would never forgive herself for not doing anything to make sure they stayed that way. Even if that meant putting herself in danger. She was a thief, not a monster.

While she got to the door, she caught a whiff of smoke and her heart sank. Killing them was not enough, they had to destroy all their memories too? There was no time to lose now, she threw the door open and squinted instantly at the light inside. The top of the desk in front of her was on fire, and she saw the father half lying on his desk chair, a hole in his head. She had to act quickly because at this rate, she would soon barely be able to breathe. She heard more coughing coming from right next to the door, under a small table covered with a tablecloth. She didn't think twice: she pushed the table forward and it fell down with everything that was on it, revealing a small crouching girl with wide eyes. She got up instantly and started stabbing the air wildly with an ancient looking dagger, screaming like a lunatic.

The woman blocked all the attacks easily, removed the knife from the child's hands and took both of her wrists in one hand. She used the other one to remove her hood and looked at the girl, who looked back defiantly, even though tears were falling freely from her eyes. The woman's features softened to a concerned look, and she felt something stir inside of her, something she thought had died with her own daughter all those years ago, but still felt like yesterday. Maybe this was a reason why she didn't leave this house when she first noticed that something was wrong. She knew for certain that this little girl would have nowhere to go if she left her here, or dropped her off somewhere. The fire would ensure no one would think she was still alive or try to look for her. Even with the flames still spreading, she kneeled while letting go of her wrists and took one more moment to try and convince her.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. There's nothing left for you here, but I can take care of you, and I promise to make them pay for what they did to your family," she said gently.

The look of fear in the girl's eyes disappeared and she nodded. The woman smiled, and took the child in her arms before rushing back out of the house, never looking back. The replica she had made of the painting would have to occupy the empty spot instead of the real one. She now had a seven year old to take care of, and a vengeance to plan.


	2. Chapter 1

Rating: T for now, but maybe borderline M later on, I guess we'll see where that goes but you have been warned, just in case!

Disclaimer: I do not own D.E.B.S., Angela Robinson is the mastermind behind it. White Collar belongs to USA Network and Jeff Eastin. No copyright infringement is intended, just having some fun and letting out my inner geek :P

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**Chapter 1 :**

**One step forward, two steps back**

The sun was slowly rising, bathing the DEBS campus in a soft and warm golden light. The sky, filled with fluffy clouds, was displaying an impressive show of colors, and a cool breeze made the leaves dance in the trees. The peacefulness of this perfect spectacle was contrasting wildly with the emotional turmoil of the girl lying in one of the rooms of the Sector 1 house, who was completely oblivious to the magic of the world outside. She looked at the girl next to her, who was still sound asleep, red locks of hair covering parts of her pretty face. A strong feeling of longing for something more filled her heart, something she was growing familiar with, but that she knew could never be more.

_It's good that one of us managed to get some sleep…_ she thought. She didn't seem to get much of it lately, and sadly not for the reasons she would have hoped for. _At least when I don't sleep I'm not sleepwalking._ The only times her brain seemed to shut up lately was when they kissed, which was not very often. For the rest of the time, her heart and her reason duelling constantly left her distracted during classes and stakeouts, and she felt that the lack of sleep was starting to take its toll on her mind and body. She knew she should have ended this already, in fact she should not even have let it begin in the first place. But loneliness and hope can become one's worst enemies at times, and she had not been able to resist the temptation when the redhead had brushed her lips against hers for the first time, or all of the following ones for that matter. She had been struggling for the past few months about the situation, but every time she decided that she was done, her resolve was melted with a look, a smile, a touch.

She still had to try once more. For her sanity, she knew this could not go on forever. Friends was all they were from what she had been told too many times now, even if the events seemed to show the opposite. They were friends, that much was true, and they had been ever since they had been assigned to the same squad three years ago. Because of this, she really hoped she would be strong enough to go back to the platonic realm. It seemed to be the only way to save their friendship, for she felt that if they kept ignoring the fact that only hurt could come out of this whole mess. It would only end badly and nothing would be left to salvage.

She let her eyes wander around the room once more. There was not much else to do so early in the morning while lying in someone else's bed and trying to avoid waking up anyone. Simple white pressed wood furniture was lining the walls, which were painted tan, with a couple posters hanging here and there. To her right was a small desk placed right in front of the window with a purple laptop on it, some pencils, a backpack and a couple of clothes lying around. To her left was a bedside table right next to the bed which held the clock as well as a bottle of water and two DEBS watches. A bit further left was the door, and on that same wall was a bookcase that seemed to be too full for its size. Then, in front of the bed and next to the door of the very tiny closet was a dresser, on top of which were standing a few framed pictures. Her gaze stopped on the one in the middle. It was a portrait of two girls in casual clothes standing in a back alley that softly blurred behind the subjects. The girl on the right, slightly taller with long red hair in a ponytail and a freckled face was facing the camera, giggling with her eyes closed and her right hand on her belly. The one on the left had straight and layered short hair of a light chestnut color that went down to her chin with flipped out ends and thinned bangs that separated into a few locks. She was slightly turned towards the ginger, her brown eyes fixated on her and her face lit up with a soft smile, both hands resting in each one of her jean's back pockets. She had taken that photograph of the two of them with her tripod a few months ago, before things got… complicated.

She felt the other girl begin to stir and looked at the clock: it showed 6:11am. Good, hopefully they would have some time to talk before getting interrupted by the usual shouting marathon. Her mind wandered shortly to a time when they hadn't made the top squad yet and were still allowed regular methods for waking up and more than 5 minutes prep time. _Things were simpler then_, she thought with a sad smile. Life sure did change, and not always for the better it seemed. When she turned her head back the other way, her brown eyes were met by dark blue ones. The other girl blinked a few times and yawned a little, hiding her mouth with her right hand.

"What time is it?" she asked sleepily.

"Ten past six, in the morning sadly."

The redhead groaned plaintively and started to rub her eyes. It was now or never, but the words were failing her and she started fidgeting nervously with her hair. After sighing heavily, she blurted out what had to be the most overused sentence in history.

"Skyley, we need to talk…"

"Evy… Not this again? You're my best friend, you know that, I'm not trying to hurt you. I love spending time with you, and you're one of the most important people in my life."

With that, Skyley smiled brightly at her and put one arm around her while resting her head against her shoulder. Evelyn relaxed in the embrace for a few seconds before her mind started working again.

"You know that's not the problem!" she said a little louder than necessary. There were so many things she should have said then, wanted to say. She had thought about it over and over, and in her head everything seemed crystal clear, but letting it out was a different matter. Every time she tried, her mind suddenly went blank, words jumbled up or it simply came out so wrong that it just didn't make sense anymore. Trying to express deep negative feelings had never been her strength as she was used to keeping those kinds of things to herself.

"You're not even gay, why are you doing this?" was all she could come up with.

"Oh come on, do we really need labels now? Can't we just enjoy what we have without worrying about it? I mean it's not like any of us is taken at the moment anyway, what harm is there in comforting each other every now and then? I mean, you sure don't complain when I do this…" she said while taking her right hand in hers, and starting to rub it gently. "Or this…" she added before kissing it gently. "Or even this…" she finished before kneeling next to her and kissing her lightly on the lips.

A familiar heat had started to creep up Evy's face, partly because of the physical contact, and partly from the shame of being so weak again. When their lips parted, they looked at each other in silence for a few seconds. Her heartbeat had picked up and her breathing was shallow. She started to feel slightly light headed and thought that a distraction would be more than welcome now that she had failed her goal once more. As if to grant her wish, a woman's voice started resonating loudly in the house.

"ATTENTION DEBS! ATTENTION! EMERGENCY EVENT, REPORT YOUR LAZY ASSES RIGHT NOW! RIGHT THIS SECOND!"

Ever since Mr. Phipps' death, Agent Max Brewer had taken over his job. The girls often joked about her taking it because she enjoyed yelling at them so much. The truth was that underneath her rough and borderline psychotic exterior, she really did care about the Academy and its students. She had been an amazing agent on the field, and still went on very important missions, mostly those where there would be a chance to shoot someone. That was the one condition she had set before accepting the job, for she knew she'd need the action once in a while. Her loyalty to her country or to the school and Mrs. Petrie could never be questioned, and she had earned her full trust over the years.

After her graduation around nine years ago, she had been sent on very important missions for the international bureau for a while, and had brought back some pride to the DEBS, which had gotten a fairly bad reputation at some point. Nobody seemed to be exactly certain of the reason, as officially there was no proof of why that should be. There were rumours of course, about the DEBS' Poster Child, the only person to ever get a perfect score on the secret test hidden within the SATs, taking off with the notorious supervillain Lucy Diamond. None of these actual posters seemed to exist anymore, and this sounded like an old wife's tale, but some things did seem to point out in that direction. There was the fact that Lucy Diamond had simply vanished overnight and had not been heard of since, for example, or people still talking about the legendary Perfect Score yet nobody seemed to know her name. The apparently sensitive subject was never discussed in front of the higher ups, as if it would upset them somehow, especially the head of the school.

The last hint that those rumours might be true was something that Evelyn had uncovered one day, or hadn't for that matter. She had always been fascinated by that story, and had wanted to learn more as soon as she heard it the first time. So, she had gone to the Academy's library and had searched it thoroughly, reading anything she could find on Lucy Diamond in old reports. Weirdly enough, she couldn't find anything about her in those files since two years before this whole event had supposedly taken place. She had also searched the students archives, trying to find the infamous DEB's profile but came back empty handed as well. Of course, this whole thing was more than intriguing, but after some time she had unconsciously put all this information in a corner of her mind and didn't think about it that much anymore, except for the random daydream now and then of being kidnapped too by someone like Lucy Diamond whom, despite all that was said about her, might not have been that bad for a DEB to throw everything away to be with her. Someone that would turn her world upside down and take her away from this whole mess she felt trapped in.

"YOU HAVE NO TIME TO SLEEP SOLDIERS, GO GO GO GO!" the shouting continued. Obviously, everyone was fully awake now, panic seemingly having invaded the four students in the house. Evy jumped out of the bed opened the door and started running towards her own room at the end of the hallway. She almost bumped into her squad captain, Alex, who was coming out of the bathroom.

"Evy, you're not even dressed yet!" she said loudly. "Get going, Mad Max is freaking out!"

That nickname was rather widely used, though never in front of the principal subject. They had to be careful though as a girl had accidently blurted the nickname one day while not knowing that agent Brewer was right behind her. Apparently the shape of the girl in bullet holes could still be found somewhere on one of the school's walls, and the unfortunate student had been warned that next time, she wouldn't be aiming so well.

"COME ON, LET'S GO, MOVE IT, MOVE IT, MOVE IT!"

Evelyn opened her bedroom door a bit too strongly, and it slammed onto the wall behind it. From the mark that was already there, it wasn't the first time, and probably wouldn't be the last. She closed it a little more gently and started looking for her DEBS uniform. It was a good thing they were rather scantily clad; it sped things up when it came time to dress in a hurry. She took off her dark turquoise capri pajama bottom and her black tank top, took a fresh pair of white knee high socks and girly boxers and changed those quickly, found her blue plaid skirt hanging on the chair by her desk and picked up her adjusted short-sleeved white shirt from the doorknob and put them on.

She had certainly felt uncomfortable wearing this outfit at first as she had never been the most confident person in the world. She was not amongst the popular ones in high school and her love life so far had done nothing to help with her self-esteem. But after a while she got used to being underdressed, and the DEBS constant training as well as the seduction courses had made her feel much more at ease with her now very fit body. There was also the fact that she felt more comfortable with who she was and her orientation, and even though she was more of a girl next door, she had learned to appreciate her image. She was still shy, but somehow it had never really impaired her skills as a spy because playing a part came easily to her, and most of the time it felt simpler than being herself.

She ran out of her room, entered the bathroom which was luckily empty by now, and then proceeded to brush her teeth in turbo speed. Her hair was sticking out in every direction and she had absolutely no time to wash or style it, so she just picked her brush and tried to lessen the mess. Because her hair was incredibly fine, nothing ever held, not pins nor clips, and since she had recently gotten it cut the same length as a few months ago, it was too short for a ponytail. She settled for two small buns on each side of her head, slightly more to the back. She washed her face quickly and also put some water on her bangs to flatten them so they wouldn't stand up.

"I DO NOT HAVE ALL DAY!"

She hurried back to her room and took her discreet rectangle glasses from the bedside table. Being nearsighted kind of sucked, especially when at such a low degree as she spent most of the time putting them on and removing them depending on the activity. She mostly wore them outside as she didn't need them so much inside. She had contacts as well, but she felt way too lazy to put them on today and used them mainly when they were on the field, depending on the mission.

"TEN…"

She found her blue plaid tie on her desk, stretched it out some, put it around her neck and let it hang loosely.

"NINE…"

She took her black Vans canvas shoes with white soles and laces and just slipped them on without unlacing them.

"EIGHT…"

She grasped her charcoal messenger bag lying half open on the floor and placed it over her shoulders.

"SEVEN…"

She gathered some basic makeup to go, especially to try to conceal the dark circles that seemed to have become permanent under her eyes lately and dropped it in her bag.

"SIX…"

She quickly walked back to the door, opened it carefully this time and headed towards the stairs. The rest of her squad was already waiting for her next to the door looking at her. She had just started going down the stairs when she felt something was missing.

"My watch!" she gasped.

"FIVE..."

She ran back to her room but it didn't appear to be anywhere at first glance. She could hear Alex going crazy downstairs, and Olivia trying to calm her down.

"FOUR…"

Suddenly, it hit her. She ran towards Skyley's room, burst in and saw it on the bedside table.

"THREE…"

She picked it up and hurried back downstairs.

"TWO…"

The other girls had left the house and were waiting in the car. Evy closed the house's door and jumped into the backseat of the dark blue Beetle convertible without opening the door, landing next to Olivia just as she could hear the last number of the countdown from inside. Alex leaped onto the accelerator and the tires screeched a little before they started moving at a speed that would have made most people feel uncomfortable.

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The meetings usually took place in the DEBS cafeteria, so that's where the Sector 1 squad headed at first, but just as Alex was about to park the car, Max Brewer's face appeared on the screen in the dashboard.

"Not here soldiers, the briefing will take place inside the Academy today. We are waiting for you in the Phipps Office," she said using a much softer voice than the one she had a few minutes before.

Alex turned the car around and drove them a block further. She was a good leader, Evelyn thought. At 23 years old, their squad captain was a year older than her and she had been assigned to the Sector 1 squad before the others. She could be a little rough around the edges sometimes and seem overconfident, but she was fair, had complete trust in her team and, under her supervision, every single one of them had earned their stripes. After she stopped the car, Alex turned around to look at her teammates with her blue-gray eyes, her long wavy dark brown hair flowing with the movement, before letting out the usual "Let's do this!" so they would get moving.

Everyone got out of the car, making sure they forgot nothing, and started walking quickly towards the building. The Phipps Office was on the top floor, so they entered the elevator and Alex hit the button number 4 before sliding her passkey in the slot to gain access as this was also the floor containing the offices of Susan Petrie and Max Brewer. Usually students rarely went there as you needed special authorization: there were no classrooms and the teachers' offices were situated in a more accessible area.

Skyley, who was standing right behind Evelyn, took advantage of the brief time the elevator took to get up to slide her right hand in Evy's left one for a moment, and smiled at the chestnut-haired girl when she turned to look at her, a hint of surprise showing on her face. They broke the contact the second the doors opened, and she saw the other girl looking discreetly at Alex and Olivia in turn to see if they had noticed anything. Both girls were looking straight ahead and walked out of the elevator one after the other, followed by Skyley, and then Evelyn who had spaced out for a second and ran out of the elevator right before the doors closed.

They were walking in silence towards the room at the end of the large hallway, with Alex leading up front as usual. At almost 5'8, she was the tallest of the squad and had a few inches more than the rest of her team. Evelyn always felt rather small when looking up talking to her with just about 4 inches less, so she could only imagine how Olivia must be feeling at just 5'1. It was a good thing that size did not matter as much as skills in here, and they all had plenty of those.

She came out of her reverie as their squad captain opened the frosted glass door. There seemed to be a few other people in the room aside from Agent Brewer and Mrs. Petrie, but she couldn't make out who yet.

All heads inside the room turned towards the newly arrived squad, all except one. The young man by the very large window overlooking the campus stood undisturbed by the change. The head of the school didn't move an inch, while her secretary Madeleine stood from the huge oval table occupying most of the room. The squad nodded politely to the older woman, but didn't try anything further than that, knowing full well she cared not for pleasantries. Agent Brewer approached the younger girls, looking half annoyed, which was the way she looked almost permanently. Her hair was tied up in a basic ponytail, which was surprising since she usually just let it hang loosely past her shoulders. The darker skinned woman motioned for them to come closer and walked towards the middle aged man who was still sitting at the table, going through some files. He then stood up, shot them a genuine smile while smoothing absent-mindedly his dark grey suit and burgundy tie before extending his right hand to Alex who was up front.

"Girls, this is special agent Peter Burke from the FBI. Agent Burke, this is our top squad's members: Alex Gallagher, Olivia Spencer, Skyley Elliott and Evelyn Chase," Max said, pointing at each of the students in turn. It was a good thing she had an amazing memory for names, unlike some other people in the room. Then again, she was their direct supervisor.

"Please, call me Peter," he said before shaking every hand one after the other while pleasantries were exchanged. He was a tall man, who looked trustworthy and kind. His brown hair was slightly combed to the side, and he had laugh lines in the corners of his brown eyes.

The younger and slightly shorter man had walked to his side by then. He seemed to be in his early thirties and sure didn't look like an FBI agent. If anything, he could have been a fashion icon with the visibly expensive and tailored dark blue-gray suit he was wearing. The blazer was unbuttoned and he was wearing a vest of the same color under it, over a slightly lighter tie and a white shirt. To top it all, a charcoal fedora was covering his head. He flashed them all his most disarming smile, took his hat off using his left hand, and shook hands while Peter made the introductions.

"DEBS, this is my consultant Neal Caffrey. Neal those are agents…"

"Gallagher, Chase, Elliott and Spencer!" Neal continued while shaking hands, a twinkle of mischief in his deep and intense blue eyes. He then switched his hat to his right hand and flipped it back onto his head with style, before lowering it a little bit more on his forehead, his smile never fading. The girls' reactions were mismatched: Alex looked somewhat annoyed, Olivia obviously found that little hat trick amusing, Evelyn was unaffected by his charm but was still rather impressed by his attitude, and Skyley's face seemed intent on trying to match her hair, something which didn't go unnoticed by the chestnut-haired girl next to her.

_One thing is certain: that guy exudes complete confidence… But that name, I've heard it before, where have I heard it before?_ Evelyn thought. It really bothered her and she told herself she would check it out later, especially after seeing Skyley's reaction and how she was looking at him. Her train of thoughts was interrupted when Susan Petrie started to talk, which made them all jump a little since that duty was usually left to Max.

"Ladies, we arranged to meet here because we need to discuss sensitive information. The bureau has asked us for help on an investigation, and since we are working on an anonymous tip, everything that will be discussed here is strictly confidential."

Her voice was strong and assertive. Nobody dared to move or make a sound, apart from Neal who had leaned against the wall and looked rather amused at the older woman's behaviour. She continued, either not noticing or not caring, fixing each of the young girls with her stare.

"If rumours are to be believed, the Savannah is back in the game."

This statement was met with gasps, expressions of disbelief and wide eyes from three of the four girls.

"But nobody has heard from the Savannah in 5 years…!" was all Alex managed to let out before Mrs. Petrie raised her hand to signal her to stop.

"There are many theories on that subject, as in gone into hiding, death, retirement or anything that comes to mind. The truth is, since the Savannah has never been captured or photographed, we don't know a lot about the character. Even the gender is left to guessing, although many seem to believe she's a woman. But since we heard nothing from official or unofficial sources over the past few years, there is no way to know the whereabouts of the infamous cat burglar."

"Who's the Savannah?" asked Olivia shyly. She had gotten into the squad some time after the others, and by then the dust on the file had already settled back. Nobody talked about it much because nobody actually knew much since the thefts had stopped just before their time.

"One of the greatest and most elusive thieves of our time, and extraordinary escape artist. Pulled off many apparently impossible heists, and stole millions worth of money, art, jewels, or anything of value. The Savannah made her official appearance in 1996 when a signature was left at a theft site, but there are signs hinting that she may have started to work 2 years before, although there is barely a trace left more often than not. Usually, the investigators often give nicknames to the perpetrators, but in this case it's as if she wanted to get her name out there, and taunt us, for she gave it to us herself. That calling card had been overlooked at first, because it is discreet and generally concealed within the theft sites or on the replica she always puts in place of the stolen items. This is also one of the reasons why most of the thefts haven't been discovered until some time after it had happened. Here's what it looks like."

Susan Petrie pushed a sheet in the middle of the table so that everyone could see what she was describing. It was a magnified stylized drawing of a cat's silhouette with unusually long ears, and the name Savannah written under it in a delicate and slightly curly handwriting. When everyone had a good look at it, she continued her monologue.

"Like her namesake, the Savannah is believed to be highly intelligent, even ingenious. Because no trace of tool usage was ever found, it is probably safe to assume that she is also agile, swift, rather adventurous and has great physical capabilities like free climbing and jumping. We believe she works alone, but there is no way to be sure if it is and always has been only one person, or even if it is the same one now as then. If this is the case, we might not be looking for someone of the same age so it's safer to assume anyone can be a suspect. There have also been copycats here and there, but all were caught as they were nowhere near as good as the original. The only thing we know for sure is that it must be someone under average height and build because it's the only way some of the heists could have been completed, and it is the reason people assumed she would be a female."

"Oh…" said Olivia, staring wide eyed at the older woman. This didn't stop her from continuing dismissively.

"The FBI has asked us for our help on this case for an undercover mission. I have a phone appointment with Lisa from Interpol so agent Brewer will take care of the rest. Let's show some hustle!" she said before clapping her hands once loudly, and then she left without another word or glance, followed by her secretary who had remained silent the whole speech, mostly because there had been no name for her to correct.

As soon as the door closed behind the two women, the atmosphere instantly seemed lighter in the office. Max, who had been standing straight near the end of the table with her hands behind her back, took a more relaxed stance before motioning to everyone in the room to take a seat around the table. They would all be more comfortable to talk and read the files, she thought, especially since those damn heels were killing her. What the hell was she thinking this morning when she chose these instead of her usual combat boots? Truth was, Mrs. Petrie had insisted she wore a pantsuit today for the meeting with the FBI so she had gone with it, but was starting to regret it. She hoped the meeting would be over soon and that she would be able to go back to her office to change as soon as possible.

She turned around, noticing that Peter had taken back his seat and that Neal had gone to sit on his right. Between Peter and the chair at the end of the table was Alex. The other three girls had gone to sit opposite of them on the other side of the table. Max pulled out the chair next to her and sat down happily. She cleared her voice a little before starting the explanations.

"Agent Burke asked for our help on the case because it's the first time the Savannah is rumoured to reappear after all these years. He's been working on a few of the thefts tied to the cat burglar, but being ever so elusive, it never lead to any of them being solved, even with Peter's impressive record for closing white collar crimes."

"It's much more impressive since Neal and I partnered up, I must say. Together we've been able to improve the conviction rate to 93 percent." Peter continued, before adding while glancing amusingly at Neal, "Of course, some criminals take a lot more work to catch."

The younger man laughed at this apparently amusing joke, and Max allowed herself a smile, but the students weren't able to join the fun as they didn't get what this was about, and only Evelyn's brain was straining at remembering something that kept eluding her. She was also slightly annoyed every time she caught Skyley staring at Neal. She hoped the rest of the meeting would be interesting and that this undercover mission would be better than the last one. _I mean come on, pretending to be a nun? Can't be any worse than that I'm sure... _she thought, remembering the not so fun times that had incurred. She started paying attention once more after the few seconds of laughter died off and Max's voice was heard again.

"Do you want to explain the big picture since this is your investigation, Peter?" She was obviously comfortable being more familiar with him, which led the others to think that they might have worked together before.

"Sure, Max! So, we received this anonymous phone call two days ago, unfortunately too short to be traced, and not exactly filled with information, but the FBI has agreed to follow up on it since it's our only lead to the Savannah in years, so it's as good as it gets for now." As he finished his sentence, he pulled out his smart phone from his briefcase, pushed a few buttons and put it on the table.

"As you know, every US government agency digitally records phone calls now. We received this one two days ago, but I think it's better if you hear it yourselves," he added before pressing play.

_"Agent Peter Burke speaking."_

_"Da. You arre the Vhite Collarr division?"_

Max had lowered her head and closed her eyes in concentration, but as soon as the voice of the woman with a strong Russian accent was heard, her head jerked back up and her eyes snapped open in surprise. Peter noticed the motion but let the recording go on without interrupting.

_"Yes, who is this?"_

_"I have inforrmation about the Savannah."_

_"What?!"_

_"Therre is not a lot I can tell you except that the thief vill be underrcoverr at the Arrthurr Wilkinson College in Sunnyvale this veek. I know that they vill trry to blend in forr a while, but I don't know forr how long orr vhat the tarrget is."_

_"How do I know you are telling the truth, and that this isn't a trap?"_

_"You don't. But let's just say ve have common interrest…"_

Then, the call was ended by the mysterious woman and only the sound of an empty line was left. Max was practically at the edge of her seat when the recording ended. She frowned and sighed before saying pensively:

"The last time I heard this voice, it led us exactly to what we had been looking for. I don't think this is a trap."

"Either way, the FBI decided to seize this chance, but with a reduced workforce. That's where you come in, for that reason as well as the fact that you girls will have an easier time infiltrating the school without being noticed!" Peter said with smile and a wink.

"Are you familiar with the Arthur Wilkinson College and the man behind it?" he continued right away.

"Isn't he the Silicon Valley tycoon who seems to have way too much money and time on his hands and decided that regular colleges weren't good enough for his daughters so he founded his own?" Skyley answered, happy to show off some of her knowledge in front of the amazingly handsome young man facing her.

"I guess Mr. Wilkinson really cares about his daughters' education." Peter answered sarcastically. "He has a lot of friends in the right places who worry about him, which is another reason the FBI decided to go on with this investigation: to prevent any of his properties from disappearing. He is not aware of the situation and we prefer to keep it that way for now. He opened the college a few years ago, even before any of his two daughters were in age to attend. You shouldn't feel too out of place as it is also a female only school and there is a uniform as well. Neal will go undercover as a substitute teacher and I will have a role to play as well that will give me an excuse to drop in now and then if needed, but for the rest of you I think Max has your assignments ready. As for the target your guess is as good as mine. There are many possibilities since the man is rich and has quite a mighty collection, both inside the dean's office in the college, as well as in his mansion adjacent to it."

"Wow. Controlling much? I wouldn't want to be his daughter, that's for sure!" said Alex, unable to stay silent about it any longer.

"Unfortunately we are not here to judge." said Max, seemingly disappointed. "We have a job to do and each one of you has been assigned a new identity. Since you are still lacking some experience in infiltration, you will be keeping your first names. This will feel more natural and can prevent a lot of unfortunate situations from happening." Alex mumbled unhappily at this and Max could only feel sympathetic towards the squad leader as she knew she would have reacted the same way if not worse back when she was in her shoes. "Your primary mission will be surveillance: try to identify possible targets and suspects in the school, but also in the house. The best way for the latter would be if one of you befriends Arthur Wilkinson's oldest daughter. It might be easier for Skyley and Evelyn since you two will be put in most of the same classes as her. Alex will be a year higher, and Olivia a year lower since we need to cover most of the classes to make sure we can keep tabs on all the teachers and students." She pushed a folder towards each members of the squad and everyone opened theirs eagerly.

"Awesome, I always wanted a sister!" said Olivia to Evelyn.

"Me too, sis, glad it's you and not Alex!" she answered playfully. The last comment earned her a death glare from the girl in question. She then turned towards Peter and said, "So, dad, are you coming with us to our first day of school?"

He smiled and replied, "Actually, I am. But I will meet up with the dean while you go to your first classes."

"You better not miss any either, I heard that Mr. Williams here is quite a strict father…" said Neal while smiling roguishly.

"Eew… My last name's gonna be O'Connell?" they heard Skyley complain. "This time everyone will think I'm Irish for sure!" she added, pouting.

"What's wrong with a sexy Irish accent?" asked Evy with a wink.

"No way! Nothing about that in the file and I intend to keep it that way! Anyway, I'm not the language expert here, maybe Olivia should get my file!"

"Shut up and deal with it, Sky! You'll go with whatever's written in there, and better play it good so even I believe it! We have an important job to do so let's not screw it up with superficial disagreements."

"Jesus Alex, don't be so harsh, we're just having fun. I must agree with you Evy, I'm glad she's not part of the family!" pushed Olivia even further, which sent the three youngest girls into a fit of giggles, while Neal and Peter tried to hide their amusement.

By then the squad's leader had crossed her arms and was all but scowling. As soon as the laughter died off, Max hurriedly filled the silence before it got any worse. She was amazed by how much self-control she had gained over the years.

"That's enough fun for now soldiers, Ms. Gallagher does have a point, this is important and there are still some things to discuss. You will each have to carefully read your own file and get into your character; you still have a few days left before we send you into the field. Until then, you will keep going to your classes but are exempted from homework so you can get ready for the mission."

This last part seemed to calm Alex down. Homework never was her strength and those exemptions were one of the many reasons she was glad to be a part of the top squad.

"One last thing… So far, there's never been an injury or death attributed to the Savannah, but be careful nonetheless. We never know how an individual will react if pushed into a corner. That'll be all for now, dismissed."

With that, the girls got up, picked up each of their folders and left the room after saying their goodbyes. While they were walking back to the car, Evelyn felt hopeful that this was exactly the distraction she needed and was really looking forward to spending time away from the Academy and all the mess that seemed to be brewing inside of her when she was around it lately. Maybe being in a different environment would enable her to think about other things and just have fun with her squad as she used to. But before that, they still had a few more classes to attend and a butt load of reading to do, not to mention learning about their characters. Evy mentally added doing a little background check on Mr. Caffrey at the bottom of her to-do list. She would also need to pack her regular stuff, and her not so regular stuff as well. They were spies after all!


	3. Chapter 2

Rating: T for now, but maybe borderline M later on, I guess we'll see where that goes but you have been warned, just in case!

Disclaimer: I do not own D.E.B.S., Angela Robinson is the mastermind behind it. White Collar belongs to USA Network and Jeff Eastin. No copyright infringement is intended, just having some fun and letting out my inner geek :P

* * *

**Chapter 2 :**

**Tilting at windmills**

Evelyn looked at the campus scene unfolding in front of her through the car window, feeling oddly nervous about the next move. Maybe because it felt more like she was going to lead a normal life in this college for the next few weeks, even though it really was just undercover work. But they would have to attend classes, do their homework and blend in with the student body to avoid any suspicions. Of course, their homework would be done, but not necessarily always by them… They had staff for that at the DEBS Academy in case they needed the time to do other things related to the mission.

She touched her watch absent-mindedly with her left hand, as if to make sure it was still there. People could really be annoying sometimes: everyone kept telling her she wore it on the wrong wrist. Why did it matter so much? She just liked it better this way; it wasn't the old days anymore when you still had to wind up your watch. Especially DEBS watches: in all the years she had spent at the school, she could not recall having to change the battery even once, which was impressive seeing how much they used it, especially since it was also a communication device.

"Are you girls ready?" Peter asked from the driver's seat.

"As ready as I'll ever be…" replied Olivia weakly from behind Evelyn.

The chestnut-haired girl turned around to look at her. The younger girl was still rather pale from her first-time use of the teleporter. Skyley, who was sitting next to her in the backseat, pushed her playfully on the shoulder.

"Bah, you'll live!" the redhead said enthusiastically.

"True." Evelyn had to agree. "First time Sky and I had to use it, she threw up all over Max Brewer's shoes…"

"Evy! I thought we had agreed never to speak of that again!"

"Well, it's the only thing I had that I thought might make Olive feel better. Plus, it's not my fault if you have the stomach of a wuss!"

This did make the small brunette laugh a little bit. It had already been two hours since they had teleported in Sunnyvale, and she was barely feeling any better. They had arrived a bit after Peter and Neal who had flown from New York and were waiting for them in a house that was about twenty minutes away by car from the college. It would probably have looked way too suspicious if they had just teleported in the middle of the place. It was also where Peter and Neal would stay, and the place where they would hold their meetings while they stayed in this city. Evelyn, Skyley and Olivia were getting to the school together by car with Peter since they were supposed to be a family and Sky a long-time friend. Neal, being a substitute teacher, was already over there, and Alex had gone to the school by herself with the motorcycle that she had been provided with, because she needed to be independent, not having her "parents" around to drive her.

"Please tell me you recorded this," said Olivia while unbuckling her seat belt. She grabbed the water bottle that Evy was handing her, took a few mouthfuls and gave it back.

"Sadly no," answered the girl in front of her. "It happened way too fast after we popped into the room and I was still a bit dizzy myself. Also, I don't think having a humiliated Max on video would have been a good idea for anyone's health."

"Can we stop talking about this and get moving now?" Skyley asked, pouting with her arms crossed.

Olivia breathed deeply a few times and opened the car door, everyone else following her lead. Her legs didn't seem as shaky as she would have thought and she felt she would be able to walk normally. It was nice to get some fresh air too. She stretched a little before picking up her bag from the backseat. Evelyn had already closed the door on her side and was waiting for her with a worried look. Skyley walked a bit in the direction of the building but stopped to wait on them both.

The three girls felt a bit overdressed, being so used to wearing the DEBS' outfit. This school's uniform consisted of white shirts, dark purple blazers, much longer dark grey skirts and knee high black socks with black shoes. They were glad to have a break from wearing ties though.

"Okay girls, your first classes will begin soon and you do not want to be late for that. You all have your schedule?" Peter said. He was wearing pricey but more casual clothes than last time they had met, and looked awfully cheerful. He seemed to be pretty comfortable playing his part to say the least. The three students checked to make sure they had it and answered affirmatively.

"Sky and I are together in this first class. Will you be okay going to yours by yourself Olivia?" Evelyn asked.

"Yeah, I'm feeling better already. Maybe I just needed to get out of the car. That was enough traveling for today…" she replied wincing.

"All right, in that case I'll meet you all later. I have a meeting with the dean, but I'll bring your bags and everything you need to your rooms later and then you can settle down," the FBI agent said while making sure he locked the expensive car. After all, Peter Williams was supposed to be a rich steel magnate. He was glad that they had kept this identity of his going: it could be practical at times, and fun! He would miss his wife Elizabeth a lot during his time here, but if it meant he might be able to get closer to catching the Savannah, it was entirely worth it.

"Okay, Dad," replied Olivia and Evelyn, waving and giggling a little.

"Thanks Mr. Williams," said Skyley politely.

And with that the girls started moving quickly towards the college. Agent Brewer had arranged for them to have mostly general education classes so that they might have access to more possible suspects. The two older girls were off to a literature class, conveniently given by Neal, and the brunette had a Russian class. Being already fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, French, German and Japanese, she was glad to try her hand at something new, even if it was only for a short time. Maybe she'd be able to continue when they got back to the Academy. She'd always had a gift for languages, as well as for perfectly mimicking any accent.

They split off inside since their classrooms were in opposite directions in the old looking school. It was just an impression of course, because it had been built just a few years ago, but it must have been inspired by Victorian architecture. It sure was a big change from the Academy which looked much more modern. It was an impressive four-story building, six if you counted the last two floors of the big clock tower that was topped by pointed roofs of a greenish-gray color. Parts of the beige stone walls were covered with climbing plants and the main section was flanked by two wings, making it look like a "C" from above. As for inside, everything felt oversized, from the tall windows that were letting in a lot of natural light to the high ceilings or the huge front doors.

"I feel like I'm entering Hogwarts," said Evelyn to the redhead walking next to her. "Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating but it's no wonder this private school is so expensive."

"Well, I'm sure a lot of people in the area have the means to pay for it. Good thing we don't have to."

They continued walking in the large hallway, following the numbers on the doors.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," she answered absent-mindedly. "Oh, here it is!" the chestnut-haired girl said to her friend, pointing a few doors further.

"We're lucky to be on the first floor. Poor Olivia, I think hers was on the third floor, and with those giant stairs… Why do the ceilings have to be like a hundred feet high?"

"I dunno, rich people have weird ideas sometimes. We'll have our turn though. Some of our classes are on the other floors."

Skyley walked past the other girl and entered the classroom first, looking around eagerly. Wooden moldings were rising from the floor to the middle of the white walls. Rows of wooden desks and chairs were lining one of the sides of the room while on the other side was the teacher's desk, the blackboard, a few half-full bookshelves and a bit more empty space than necessary to move around. There were a few students sitting in the room already, but there were plenty of empty seats as there was still a few minutes left before the class would start.

"Hey, I just spotted Amanda Wilkinson, let's sit next to her. If we're lucky maybe we'll have a chance to introduce ourselves and get a foot in the door already," the redhead whispered towards her squad mate as she stopped. Evelyn didn't notice she had ceased walking and bumped straight into her, having been more than a little distracted by the curves of the girl in front of her and the way she moved. She hit her nose on Skyley's head, took a step back and blinked a few times. The ginger turned around fully, looked at her with an annoyed look and hissed, "What are you **doing**?!"

The culprit looked at her feet, feeling the heat rising as a deep crimson color painted her face from the neck up, and mumbled a few lame apologies. "Try to be careful!" her friend answered a little harshly before picking a seat a few stairs up and sitting down next to whom must be the oldest daughter of the dean. If Evy hadn't been so embarrassed and trying to avoid looking at anyone as she walked quickly towards the seat next to Skyley, she might have noticed that she had caught someone else's attention. The class continued filling up as she was still trying to fight down her severe blushing.

When Neal made his entrance right on time, there seemed to be a collective breath intake from most of the classroom. A few students had simply not taken notice yet, but the only two who didn't seem interested at all were Evelyn, who was just staring blankly ahead of her with her arms crossed, and the one who was still looking intently at her. When the teacher started speaking, the DEB was more than happy to think that other people's attention would now be elsewhere than on her.

"Hello ladies, I'm Mr. Samuel Carroll and I'll be filling in for Mrs. Hailey," said the young man with a broad smile as he put down his material on the desk and wrote his new name on a chalkboard. The timing couldn't have been better as an empty spot was already opened in the school with the previous teacher going on maternity leave and, with the FBI's resources, it had been easy to secure the job for Neal.

He had left out his expensive suits aside for something more suitable for a teacher. He was wearing black dress pants, a light blue shirt, a black tie with thin white stripes and a grey sleeveless pullover with thin black lines around the neck and sleeves. He had also put on glasses, but none of it made him look any less handsome than usual, which was probably why most girls in the classroom were now looking at him with more interest than one usually would for a lecture, Skyley included. _I wish someone would look at me like that too sometimes…_ Evelyn thought secretly, glancing at her sideways. Little did she know it was happening right now, but she was much too lost in her thoughts to see it.

Not too long after the lecture had started, Skyley started whispering to the girl on her right.

"Sorry to bother you, but can you tell me where we are? I'm new here…"

"Of course!" Amanda Wilkinson answered. "Here, page 162."

"Thanks! I'm Skyley by the way…" the redhead smiled.

"Amanda, nice to meet you." She smiled back.

They shook hands discreetly and the ginger turned back and opened her book. Evy followed her lead and pretended to pay attention to the class even though she was still very distracted and hoping Skyley wasn't mad at her: she did have a temper sometimes. The chestnut-haired girl started to chew lightly at the end of her pen without noticing she was frowning while the rest of the class went by in a flash.

When it ended and everyone was busy gathering their things, Sky took the opportunity to talk a little bit more to Amanda.

"Thanks again for earlier, it's appreciated. It kinda sucks to transfer in the middle of a session."

"No problem. Where are you guys from?"

"What makes you think we're together?" the redhead asked playfully.

"Well for one thing that little altercation earlier," the dean's daughter answered with a grin.

"Oh that, well you know, we're just like sisters. And we're from LA."

"Cool! And I know what that's like, I have a younger sister. You probably don't know yet since you guys just arrived, but there's a party in two days for Halloween. You should come, it'll be fun!"

"Thanks, I think I will!" Skyley replied, visibly excited at the idea.

"You can come too, everyone's welcome really," Amanda said towards the other DEB. "How's your nose by the way?" she asked smirking.

"Better than my pride…" answered Evelyn a bit coldly, not exactly thrilled to get back on that subject and feeling rather bitter about her friend's comment.

Seeing the somber mood her friend seemed to be in, Sky stepped in again, determined to make sure they left a good impression.

"Seriously, is Mr. Carroll hot or what?" she asked Amanda in a low voice while nodding in Neal's direction. She didn't notice how her fellow DEB rolled her eyes at that statement.

"Tell me about it. I wouldn't say no to a few private lessons."

They giggled a little before the redhead added, "Had I known teachers looked like that here, I would have transferred earlier."

"Unfortunately, most don't look anything like him. Though if we're lucky they might find him something permanent. Anyway, I have to go now, but I'll catch you up later."

"Sure, see ya!"

Amanda Wilkinson left the room waving at them, and they waved back. Skyley always had an easy time making friends; she was good at making people trust her.

"See? I think it's safe to say the door is wide open whenever we need to go in. Just need the right excuse and I'm sure it can be arranged with a certain teacher," she said to Evy.

"Right. By the way, I'm glad to know we're just like sisters. I know you don't like labels but that's the last word I would have used to describe us," she replied moodily.

"Oh come on, don't be like that!" She checked her surroundings to make sure all the students had left. "We're supposed to be undercover, remember? And I'm sorry for earlier, I shouldn't have snapped at you like that." She winked at her friend and smiled broadly, putting her arm around her shoulders and pulling her along while she started heading for the door. The other girl's defenses crumbled and she sighed deeply.

"You're right, I'm sorry too…"

"Let's not talk about it anymore. We have some time before the next class. We should go check our rooms. Your dad will be waiting for us anyway."

"Okay!" Evelyn agreed, feeling her good mood return. "I guess we shouldn't let him wait any longer then!"

* * *

Evelyn and Olivia entered the room that would be theirs for the time they were here. It was not overly big, but at least there were two separate beds instead of one bunk. There was also a double desk with chairs and a big chest of drawers with a mirror on top. The dorm was clean enough and had a nice tall window and all the furniture was solid wood, which made it look much more luxurious.

Olivia pushed her luggage under the bed closest to the window with her foot and flopped gracelessly onto the mattress with a grunt, arms and legs stretched to full extent. She didn't feel sick anymore, but she felt completely drained, and it was only midday.

The older girl put her stuff on the other bed and asked, "Think you'll be able to get through the rest of the day?"

"Yeah… I just need to lie down for a few, I'm so exhausted! Is it normal? Feeling like this after using the transporter?" the brunette answered, her voice slightly muffled by the mattress her face was resting against.

"Depends, there can be a lot of side effects, especially the first time. Not everyone reacts the same. Most of the time it's just slight dizziness or weariness, but I know that it is possible to experience blurred vision, nausea, upset stomach, loss of consciousness or temporary amnesia. There have even been a few cases of hallucinations! Though after a few uses you mostly get used to it. Mrs. Petrie probably doesn't feel a thing anymore. I think if she stopped using it, she'd probably suffer from withdrawal! But don't worry, I'm here and I'm sure everything will be back to normal tomorrow."

"Thanks Evy, you're really sweet," Olivia told her, raising her head this time and gracing her with a soft smile.

"Don't mention it, I'm glad to be rooming with you." She started to unpack some of her stuff.

"I'm glad too, because… Well, ever since I joined the squad, I've been feeling a bit like an outcast."

"Nonsense! You're just as important to the team as any other one of us, Olive!"

"I know… It's just, I was the last to arrive, I'm the youngest and you've all known each other for a longer time."

"That's not always a positive thing." Evelyn looked at her friend, playfulness tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"You're right, let's hope Alex and Skyley don't tear each other's faces off before we're out of here!" Olivia added before they both fell into a fit of laughter.

"Well they had to find a good reason for us to be able to get together since Alex is supposed to be a stranger! But seriously, I think it's a good thing: I'll get to know you better." _And get a break from Sky too… Maybe I'll be able to sleep some for a change_, she added internally, not even knowing if that was what she really wanted.

At that, Olivia's face lit up and all her fatigue seemed to disappear. She felt really happy, and suddenly pretty hungry too. "Let's get something to eat, I'm starving!"

"Good idea, we can unpack later. Plus, we have classes in a bit so we should get going anyway."

"School girls going undercover as school girls… Gotta appreciate the irony."

"Sure beats nuns. Though I think we won't be able to concentrate that much on the lessons or homework: we have surveillance to do!" _And I didn't perform exactly well in that department so far… I'm starting to wonder if I'm really cut out for this after all, seeing how I can't seem to keep my emotions in check_, Evelyn thought as they exited the room.

* * *

"Anyway, what happened to the one that was here before me? Why was the spot open?" Olivia eagerly put some fries in her mouth while waiting for the answer. Evelyn looked a bit uncomfortable at the sudden question and started to fidget nervously with the flipped out end of her short hair.

"Well…" She looked around her to make sure no one in the loud cafeteria was near enough to hear what she was going to say before leaning towards the brunette and replying in a low voice, "I'm not even sure where to begin… To be honest, she was kind of a nutcase. The Academy put up with her because she was really good, but she seemed to have troubles with authority figures and was always fighting with Alex and questioning orders. Then, the first time we met Mrs. Petrie, she tried to make a good impression and didn't take the rejection too kindly. She just lost it and began a personal vendetta against her. From what I heard, she managed to find where she lived and TPed the house inside out. After that, she came back to the school, slashed her tires and set her office on fire while she was out to check on her car. Apparently she didn't go quietly either when agent Brewer intercepted her… fought with all she had. Max still kicked her ass though."

Olivia's eyes went wide at the revelation and her mouth dropped slightly open in shock. The girl in front of her put her forefinger on her smiling lips while mouthing "Shhh" and winking at her.

"You can't be serious."

"Oh, I'm dead serious. Imagine how we felt when we learned about it! It was also kind of a relief though, especially since you're so much better than her in every way. You don't have anything to worry about. I'm pretty sure you're here to stay." The chestnut-haired girl smiled brightly at her friend and started poking at her salad with a fork.

Once the surprise was gone, Olivia started eating enthusiastically again. "I think you're right, it would be hard to do worse than that," she said after swallowing her mouthful. "You sure you don't want any fries?"

"No, thanks. I'm not very hungry."

"You okay? Are you still feeling funny because of the…" she stopped for a second when someone passed them by and she deciding to go with a safer option, "…traveling we had to do? I know you get motion sickness sometimes."

"No, it's…" Evelyn stopped herself when she realized what she had been about to say. "I'm fine. I think I'm just a bit tired too, is all," she said while dropping her brown eyes to look at her plate. It was not very convincing and Olivia noticed there was something fishy, but didn't say anything because it was obvious her friend didn't want to talk about it, especially here. She decided to change the subject to avoid any more awkwardness.

"So I heard some people talking about this Halloween party. It's a good thing we brought our costumes just in case since we were gonna be here on the 31st."

"Yeah, and Sky kinda told Amanda Wilkinson we'd be there anyway, so I guess we don't exactly have a choice."

"She's already made contact?" Olivia asked, visibly impressed.

"Oh, you know how she is, doesn't like to waste time." Evelyn offered matter-of-factly.

"I'm thinking it might be complicated to identify suspects since, like, half the student body could fit the profile. And that's without counting the staff. I guess we'll have to keep our eyes peeled for anything suspicious," the brunette said dropping her voice. She looked at her watch before adding, "We should go now; the next classes will be starting soon."

"Okay," the other DEB answered as they got up to throw away the leftovers of their lunch before leaving the cafeteria.

* * *

The next two days were uneventful. They went to their classes, trying to keep an eye open for possible suspects and then they hung out a bit before getting to paperwork. On top of the load given by the teachers, they had homework of their own for the Academy as well – reports to file and such, but there was nothing interesting to write. Nothing out of the ordinary happened and since so many people seemed to fit the profile, they would have to dig in a little deeper to find out how long said people had actually been around. Not all assignments were as action packed as one would think. This felt a lot like having a regular life but with twice the work at the end of the day. The Halloween party was in just a few hours though, and even if they were still on duty, the fact that they had to act normally meant they would still get to have fun!

Evelyn, who was sitting at the desk in her room, looked up from her computer's screen and out the window with a sigh. Writing those reports felt awfully like tilting at windmills at the moment since they didn't have any leads so far. Thankfully, she was almost done for today. She muttered a few words of encouragement to herself and went back to work. Then I'll go get something to eat before show time… _I really wonder what the other girls are dressing up as._ They had decided they should go as movie or series characters, but the rest was supposed to be a surprise. She had bugged the others for some time though, because she was really curious, especially about a certain redhead. Skyley loved Halloween and she usually used the excuse to wear rather scantily clad outfits. She was the only one in their squad who had never felt ill at ease about the DEBS' uniform. Obviously, she was more than comfortable with her body and really liked to show it off. It was one of the reasons why she was the one they usually used when they were in need of a seductress, that and the fact that she opened up to others much more easily.

_Focus, will ya?!_ Evy scolded herself mentally for letting her mind wander and let her fingers dance on the keyboard once more. She did so for about another hour before saving her work for the hundredth time and closing the file: you could never be too careful with computers; she had learned it the hard way and had become rather paranoid about it over time. After stretching her limbs with a loud and open-mouthed yawn, she rubbed her eyes a little before looking out the window again. The darkness had begun to spread and she noticed for the first time the harsh contrast caused by the light emitted by her computer's screen since the light had not been switched on in the room. Suddenly, a growl of protest coming from her stomach reminded her that she had not paid it much attention today. She got up while folding the laptop and decided to go fetch something to eat before getting ready for the party. She checked that she had some money with her, put on her glasses and exited the room, making sure to lock it on the way out.

The chestnut-haired girl started walking down the large and warmly-lit hallway towards the stairs, squinting her eyes from the sudden lighting change. Eventually, she reached the stairs and went down one floor to get to the ground level and kept on walking until she arrived in the cafeteria. It was rather quiet unlike usually, but some classes were still going on, which is why Skyley and Olivia were not around. As for Alex, she usually enjoyed some quiet time by herself, especially before and after going into a very crowded place. The rest of the students must be out or getting ready for the party, Evelyn guessed. She picked a tray and dragged her feet towards the food, feeling rather uninspired. In the end, she set her heart for a plate of pasta and tomato sauce. It would most likely be overcooked and taste as if the only existing spice was salt, but it seemed to be the lesser evil in there.

After the DEB sat down at a lonely table, she rested her head on her left hand and started playing with her food with the other, sighing unhappily. _I miss the Academy's food so much right now…_ It was hard to beat though as they could have reasonably custom orders made and always had fresh food as well as great chefs. After all, Jameson University needed its students to be healthy. Eventually, the plate seemed to empty itself almost magically. She had been so deep in thought that she barely noticed she had eaten the whole thing. She pulled her right wrist up to look at her watch and decided it was time to go back. _Olivia should be back by now; I guess it'll be hard to keep the surprise for any longer since we're in the same room_, she thought with a smile. Curiosity won over and she all but ran back to her room.

When Evy put the key in the lock, she was greeted by a series of curses that made her jump on the spot. She wondered for a few seconds if she should enter, and decided to knock on the door just in case: "Olive, everything okay in there? Can I come in?"

"Oh God, yes! Please hurry, I think I need help!" came the muffled response.

Sudden worry made her open the door widely in a flash, but she closed it just as fast behind her when her brain finally processed what her eyes were seeing. Olivia was standing in the middle of the room, wearing tight black latex pants that were hugging her in all the right places, but her head and arms seemed to be stuck in an equally fitted top of the same material, leaving her almost topless except for her black laced bra. She was wiggling her arms and cursing quietly at her unfortunate situation while Evelyn stood frozen on the spot, blushing furiously at the sight before her.

"Come on Evy, don't just stand there, do something! Please…" the brunette called plaintively.

"Uh… Oh…Okay. H… How can I give you a hand?" the older girl stammered. _I did not just say that… What the hell is wrong with me?! I really need to get some!_

"I forgot to take off my earrings before putting on this stupid thing, and one of them got stuck in it, the left one. I've been trying to get it unstuck but I can't see anything!"

After a deep breath, Evelyn took a few steps forward, her face still beet red, and reached out with slightly trembling hands. That outfit really was incredibly tight; she was having trouble even just reaching inside the collar and she couldn't pull the top up or down without pulling on the earring too. Only one choice was left, she had to go from under it, which made her feel rather uncomfortable in her current state of mind.

"Herm… Sorry about that," the chestnut-haired girl cleared her throat and mumbled while sliding her hands along Olivia's back under the black shirt.

"Sure, do whatever you need to get me out of this mess."

After a little bit of work, Evy finally managed to break the earring free from the large and crude white seams that were randomly placed over both pieces of the outfit.

"Finally! I can breathe again!" Olivia gasped while quickly pulling the offending piece of clothing down her head, revealing her French braided hair and smoky-eye makeup, before turning around and looking at her squad mate. "You look a bit shaken Evy, what's wrong?"

"Huh… Well, it's the first time I've seen you in a bad mood is all," she lied quickly.

"I think anyone would be after feeling blind and stuck and suffocating for like ten minutes!" Olivia commented while putting on black high-heeled shoes that went up to her ankle. "Thanks for saving me though, my hero!" She grinned while putting on the finishing touch on her costume, a fitted black latex mask that covered her head down to her cheeks, with large openings for the eyes, pointy ends on top and the same crude seams as the rest of the outfit.

Evy's eyebrows shot up when realization came crashing down on her. "You're Catwoman!" she squealed in excitement.

"The only one that matters; Michelle Pfeiffer!" Olivia replied with a proud smile. "Do you like it?"

"I love it. It's too awesome for words!"

The brunette's smile grew even wider if possible. "Thanks! So I guess you need to change too now. Do you need any help?"

"No it's okay, I don't plan on getting stuck in anything, thanks very much! You go ahead and meet the others, I'll join you soon."

"Fine! Laugh now, but if you do get stuck, you got my number," she said with a wink, still smiling. "I'll see you in a few then."

"Yeah."

Evelyn looked at her friend as she picked up her DEBS watch before putting on a pair of black gloves and leaving the room, the black outfit not leaving any room for imagination. _Oh boy, I need to get it together or else people are gonna start to think I'm a pervert. Well okay, I kind of am, but it's not like I'm ever getting any either! Oh God, if Olivia's dressed like that, I don't even want to think about what Sky will be wearing…_

Trying to calm down, she proceeded to open her suitcase and took out the different parts of her costume and put the pieces on her bed. She stripped out of her school uniform and suppressed a shiver when she was left in underwear. The weather was rather cold today, and it was now dark outside. She did not linger in her undressed state any more than necessary and put on the clothes one by one. She pulled a pair of fitted dark khaki pants up her legs and zipped it up, the low-rise being reasonable enough to make it feel sexy but not indecent. She then slipped her arms in a light beige shirt and buttoned it up, forgetting intentionally the last few buttons on top and rolling up the sleeves some. Now that she felt a little warmer, she put on the rest; a pair of vintage brown suede shoes and a brown leather belt after tucking her shirt a bit in her pants. She was still hesitating in wearing the brown leather bomber jacket she had borrowed from a friend at the Academy. She decided to put it on for now, knowing full well that she probably would take it off later, especially if there was dancing involved or too many scarcely clothed hot girls at the party. Stopping her train of thought before it derailed again, she pushed a brown felt Fedora hat on her head, her short and flipped out hair sticking out from underneath it.

Finally, she picked up the only thing still left on the bed; a brown leather bullwhip that she actually knew how to use, thanks to the DEBS Academy. Creative Fighting Tactic had been one of her favorite classes. It taught you to be aware of your environment and finding weapons in just about anything, should you be caught unarmed during any given situation. They had also learned how to fight with said improbable weapons. There were the obvious ones that could be found in just about any home, like frying pans, kitchen knives, brooms, shovels and tools, but also things that were not as commonly thought of, from umbrellas to frozen slabs of food, or even a rolled up newspaper. Basically, it was just about learning how you could find a weapon everywhere and be creative with it, if you will. The feeling of the braided leather against her skin sent her back in time to the day of her final exam.

_Mr. Wang brought the class to a warehouse outside the school grounds. The inside of the building was split in six different soundproofed rooms and the front area served as a waiting room, being filled with chairs. He told them that each of the rooms had been made to represent different kinds of environments they could find themselves in, but would not be told anything before they actually entered the one they would be randomly assigned to. They would have three minutes to show what they were made of and be evaluated on their ability to be completely aware of their surroundings and their capacity to improvise in a completely unknown situation. And, since he was doing the evaluation, he was the one they would each have to fight. At that last mention, most of the girls in the room let out a gasp and eyes went wide. He was a really good teacher, and they liked to tease him by calling him Improv Fu Master, but he was also extremely good and evasive as well as not particularly known for holding back, expecting no less from his students. He knew that he could not afford to let the girls think they were overqualified, because that was the kind of thinking that could get you killed on the field when fighting against an enemy that would have no second thought about murdering you in cold blood._

_For once, it had been decided that the students would be picked in reverse alphabetical order, which meant Evelyn would be in the last ones to go. One by one, the girls left the room, only to leave the premises by the back door after their evaluation, never having a chance to come back to the still waiting students to tell them what to expect. But each time the teacher came back out to call a new name, his physical state seemed to have a dozen more stories to tell, evidences found in new scratches on his skin, disheveled hair, tears in his clothes or some unknown residue staining his apparel. His energy level never seemed to drop an inch though, and he called each name with the same expectancy and twinkle in his eye._

_When Evelyn's name finally echoed in the room, there were just three of them left, and everyone gave an uncertain glance towards the Asian man who had spoken it. She got up a bit shakily while straightening her skirt in a nervous gesture and followed him to one of the rooms. She saw people coming in and out of the one to her right; probably cleaning up and putting everything back in place for the next student. He opened the door on their left, signaling for her to enter. As soon as she was inside, she noticed that it felt suspiciously like a high school classroom, with a few rows of seats and desks to her left and what would be the teacher's desk to her right, with a blackboard behind it. She didn't have time to notice much more since she turned around as soon as she heard the door close to face the teacher, just in time to see him throwing a fist at her at inhuman speed. Having no time to block it, she opted for dodging it matrix style with a backbend, getting back into a standing combat pose with a kickover after having shifted her weight on her hands, unfortunately missing her target. He did not lose any time before closing the distance between them again and tried to land a few kicks. She was able to dodge or block all of those as well while backing off, trying to take in more of her surroundings at the same time. When it was clear that she was able to deflect those attacks, although barely, he tried to bring her down with a low spinning sweep kick. She managed to evade this one as well by jumping over it and landing on one of the desks lining the floor. Giving her no chance to take a breather, he grabbed the wooden meter stick on the teacher's desk and went for her legs, forcing her to jump from desk to desk towards the back of the room._

_Suddenly, she noticed the round clock on the wall to her left. She all but ripped it off the wall and sent it flying like a Frisbee in the direction of her attacker. As if having planned her move in advance, he had already dropped the ruler and picked up a heavy textbook that had been lying on another desk. He used it to shield himself from the impact of the object coming his way, and threw it towards Evelyn before her own projectile even hit the ground. She dodged it by pivoting her upper body to her left, not noticing while doing so that her opponent had moved even closer in the meantime. He kicked the desk she was standing on and it slid to the back of the room before hitting the wall behind, making her lose her footing. The girl crash-landed on the floor, landing painfully on her right side, the impact driving the air out of her. It was a good thing there was a lot of space behind the last row of desks or else she could have hurt herself a lot more. She felt dizzy for a split second, but forced herself back up right away nonetheless, knowing full well she would have no time to recover. Getting up with a starfish kip up enabled her to drive away the man who wanted to avoid getting hit, thus letting her get back on her feet in a combat pose, ready for more to come._

_He did not disappoint, as she next had to block a flurry of punches coming towards her face and torso, adding a kick or two in the mix. A few hits reached their target, thankfully none where it would show. She tried to place a few here and there but it was obvious that she just simply couldn't win in an honorable fight against this one. She would just have to be smarter if possible, or just play it downright dirty. After all, there would be no rules out there in the real world when your life would be at stake. She knew there were some things she could use to her advantage in here but needed to increase the space between them first. By some miracle, she managed to land half of an uppercut under the tip of his chin. The small impact made him back off more by surprise than pain, and she took the chance to drive him backwards even more with a jackknife kick. The DEB then cartwheeled away from him on one hand, the movement of her feet making sure he wouldn't be able to get closer in the meantime. By now, she had reached the far wall again, and sent the globe that was standing on the last desk of the row flying towards her teacher with a jumping 360 roundhouse kick. Of course, he blocked it, but it still slowed him down enough to enable her to jump back on the desk next to her and head for the front of the room._

_Jumping from desk to desk again, but this time in a random pattern while switching rows to ensure she wouldn't fall for the same trick again, Evy kicked every object on her path towards her adversary. Pens and erasers were pursuing him wherever he went and, even though she knew he would not get hurt by them, a slight mischievous smile started tugging at the corners of her lips, suddenly feeling glad to at least managing to annoy him a little. Frankly, she was mostly just showing off and playing with him a bit now; after all he had asked them to demonstrate their improvisation skills. It didn't last too long though as the clock was still ticking and she soon ran out of ammo._

_Knowing he would follow her now, the girl just jumped back down to the floor and landed next to the teacher's desk, waiting until they were facing each other again. They exchanged a few hits and unfortunately one of his landed unprotected in her stomach. The force of the blow forced her backwards and she slammed onto the chalkboard behind her. It was hard to try blocking the following attacks in her current state, so she managed to roll against the wall to her right a few times while his fists tortured the hard black surface, barely missing her. One of his hands managed to grab her by the collar of her shirt and stopped her movement dead, reeling her back towards him. His hold was so strong that she started to feel slight panic rising. Without thinking, her hands started to look blindly for something to hold on to and when an object brushed against her left one, she saw her chance at turning the tables. She closed her hand around it and let herself be pulled forward without any more resistance, a strange grin lightening up her features. He was unable to hide his wonder as his eyebrows shot up, not understanding why she would be smiling in this situation. The second of hesitation was enough for her to bring her left hand up in front of his eyes before slapping the chalk brush she was holding in it with all her might using her right hand, turning her head away from the dust cloud that suddenly shot out and blinded him while he released his grip on her. Grateful that they hadn't put a brand new one on the scene, she took advantage of the diversion by delivering a jump side kick to the man's solar plexus that sent him flying backwards and knocked the wind out of his lungs in the process. As soon as he landed onto the floor on his back, she threw herself forward and got down on one knee on top of him. He opened his eyes just in time to see her right fist coming fast for his throat. That's when they heard the ring signaling that the fight was over, stopping her movement abruptly right when her hand brushed against the soft spot between his chin and Adam's apple._

_They stared at each other for a few seconds, the man obviously relieved that even though she was still holding the pose, the hit didn't strike. She, on the opposite, had a look of complete disbelief. She came out of her trance and rose to her feet quickly, offering him a hand. He took it to get up in turn before shaking it proudly._

_"I have to say I'm impressed and that doesn't happen very often."_

_"I just got lucky, I didn't even know what I was doing half the time," she stammered nervously._

_"Don't be silly, you've got good instinct and you should be proud. The last time I got my ass handed to me like that by a student…" He never finished his sentence though._

_"Who?" She asked, suddenly very curious._

_"That was a long time ago. She's not around anymore," he said with a look that allowed no more question._

_It was obvious that he might have said too much, so she didn't push, but her mind was screaming for answers. It didn't last too long though as she winced a little when he pushed her right side gently towards the door to signify that he still had a few students waiting for him. Realizing that she must have bruised a few ribs when she fell on the floor earlier, she let herself be escorted to the exit and turned around to thank Mr. Wang but he was already gone._

_As soon as she came out of the building, she was almost tackled by the rest of her squad, who seemed to be in a shabby state as well. Those uniforms would surely have to be replaced, but nobody seemed to mind as they were all extremely eager to tell the others about the story of their own evaluation. Apparently, the pitchfork Alex had found in the "barn" had done quite the trick when she had pinned one of the teacher's wrists to the wall with it, just as the 15 minutes was up. Skyley had found out in the bar room that a pool cue made for a nice bō substitute, a weapon she had mastered over the years, and the billiard balls could mean a world of pain if thrown just right. It was during the time the Academy was still looking to fill the forth spot after the last girl had been expelled, so it was just the three of them. No one had doubted the outcome of any of those combats, had it lasted more than 15 minutes and if Mr. Wang had really been their enemy, but overall they had been satisfied with their performances. After all, the chances that they would have to fight against someone who was better than him were rather low as he was one of the best in the world and they could still improve. In the following weeks, she was reminded constantly of that fight every time she laughed, breathed too deeply, or tried sleeping on her right side._

Coming back from her little trip down memory lane with a smile, the chestnut-haired DEB turned around to have a look at her outfit in the full-length mirror behind the door, taking in the effect her costume had. Satisfied with it, she let out a content sigh. She suddenly felt much more confidant and badass and decided to add a crack of the whip just for good measure. She didn't think she'd have much space to use it later on, or that this school would be as permissive as Jameson University concerning weapons of any kind to be honest, so she would have to be discreet about it, but could not leave it behind since it was such a crucial part of the character. Before leaving the room she grinned cockily at her reflection.

"All right, let's do this!"


End file.
